The week in review

Published online Thursday May 22nd, 2003 and in print issue #0220 dated Thursday May 22nd, 2003

Worst weather for a graduation: UVA's Class of 2003 gets soaked May 18.

Best example of Democrats on the run: 50 from the Texas legislature hightail it across the border to prevent a quorum and thus foil a Republican redistricting plan.

Best report for deer hunters: The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries finds no evidence of chronic wasting disease from samples of 1,114 deer.

Worst report for sushi lovers: Ninety percent of the world's large ocean fish like cod, halibut, tuna, swordfish, and marlin have disappeared in the past few decades because of ruthlessly efficient fishing practices, according to a Canadian study reported by the Washington Post.

Worst Virginia fish warning: The state Department of Health advises people not to eat PCB-tainted fish from a 12-mile stretch of the Levisa Fork near Grundy and cautions against eating fish from Knox and Beaver creeks as well.

Worst news for water users: Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority bumps wholesale rates for water by 33 percent and sewer rates 14 percent. Charlottesville City Council declines to increase rates May 19 but will consider the issue again June 2.

Worst false arrest: When James Edward Howard is arrested and charged with failure to register as a sex offender May 5, he's fired from his job with Aramark at UVA. State police discover Howard isn't required to register, and release him from jail May 12.

Worst audit results: UVA Medical Center overstated the amount of federal funds it was owed for treating indigent patients by $4.8 million in fiscal years 1997 and 1998, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In a Claudia Pinto story in the Progress, UVA officials deny any wrongdoing.

Best way to check out felonious physicians:www.vahealthprovider.com lists 48 Virginia-licensed docs with felony rap sheets– but you have to search by name!

Worst news for Greene County property owners: Their tax rate is going up to 79 cents per $100 of assessed value higher than Albemarle's 76 cents per $100 – while their teachers still can't get a one-percent raise.

Best news for Orange County property owners: Their tax rate has decreased from 87 to 81 cents per $100 assessed value– although assessments have gone up by an average of 20 percent.

Best ally in prayers at VMI: Governor Mark Warner supports the state-supported military institute's practice of saying grace before meals. The ACLU sued VMI on behalf of two cadets.

Best endowment for biologists: The Ivy Foundation gives $3 million to endow four professorships at UVA's new Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine Institute. UVA will match those funds with another $3 million. The foundation uses funds from the now-closed W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center.

Best fund from another W. Alton Jones offshoot: The Oak Hill Fund announces creation of the "Something Ventured" program to empower women and girls in the southeastern United States.

Best campaign to attract upscale bus riders: Charlottesville Transit Service is launching a Very Important Passenger campaign to attract "choice" riders who don't ride the bus out of necessity, luring them with free rides on certain routes marked with red and yellow windsocks.

Best breaking of her own Guinness World Record: Angell Husted tap dances 20.7 miles in nearly 14 hours in the Fluvanna High School gym to break her previous 1999 record of 20.036 miles.

Best film in town for Mark Linkous/Sparklehorse fans:Laurel Canyon, in which Linkous appears and contributes two songs.